


An Impeccable Taste

by viennajones



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Blow Jobs, F/M, Hints of Elena/Gwaine, Kid Fic, M/M, Past Arthur/Mithian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-31
Updated: 2014-01-31
Packaged: 2018-01-10 16:25:47
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1161936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/viennajones/pseuds/viennajones
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin is a teacher at Avalon Pre-School. That's where he meets Arthur, whose daughter is a Unicorn.</p>
            </blockquote>





	An Impeccable Taste

**Author's Note:**

  * For [n3watth1s](https://archiveofourown.org/users/n3watth1s/gifts).



> Dear Glompee, hopefully this fic does justice to what you had in mind when you left your prompt. I did my best to include the things you asked for. I only had a couple of days to put the fic together because it’s a pinch-hit, otherwise it probably would’ve been longer. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it :) Thank you to my beta, the lovely giselleslash ♥ 
> 
> (Also it's not as cracky as the summary suggests :D)

The first day back at Avalon Pre-School after a quiet holiday in his hometown of Ealdor was always a bit of a challenge for Merlin. The kids suddenly seemed a lot louder than he remembered them being only two weeks ago and as adorable as it was that they’d missed their teacher, he didn’t quite know what do with the twenty or so paintings he had received in a single day.

Merlin was grateful when 3 pm came and it was time for the parents to take charge of their children again. He was just clearing away after a few of them, putting some stray shoes back to where they belonged and picking up a few toys that lay on the floor where someone was bound to step on them when the front door opened again and a man came inside, bringing a cold gust of wind with him. He was wearing a long, dark coat over what seemed to be a fine suit and his dress shoes were spotless despite the miserable weather outside.

Merlin straightened up and smiled at the man, a little distracted by his piercing blue eyes and his blond hair that had been tousled to perfection by the wind. He got so distracted in fact that he only heard half of what the man said to him.

“…my daughter. Would you happen to know where I can find her?”

“Oh,” Merlin said, his brain finally catching on, “I don’t think we’ve met yet. I was on vacation for a few weeks. What is your daughter’s name then, Mr …” He looked at the man, waiting for him to fill in the gap.

“Arthur Pendragon,” the man said smoothly, taking his hand out of his coat’s pocket to shake Merlin’s. “And my daughter’s name is Emma.”

“I don’t think she’s in my group, which means that she must be one of the Unicorns?” Merlin hadn’t noticed any new faces in his group today and anyway Elena would have told him about any newcomers and made sure he met them immediately.

“Daddy!” A little girl with locks that matched the colour of her father’s hair came running out of the Unicorn group room and wrapped her arms around his legs in greeting.

“Hello petite mademoiselle,” Arthur said, gently ruffling Emma’s hair. “Go get your things, your grandma is waiting for you in the car.” Emma let out a delighted squeal at that and hurried off to find her jacket and change her shoes while Arthur watched her with a fond expression in his eyes.

“She’s a bit of a whirlwind, isn’t she?” Merlin asked.

“Oh, yes. She takes after her mother,” Arthur replied, his eyes focusing on Merlin again. “So you’re a teacher here?”

“That’s right. I’m Merlin, by the way, and I’m in charge of the Dragons along with Elena. I hope that Emma has settled into her group without any difficulties.” Merlin wasn’t quite sure if perhaps he was imagining things, but he thought Arthur was looking at his lips as if they were incredibly mesmerising. He pressed them together and Arthur’s eyes flicked back up.

“She’s very happy, yes.”

Emma joined them again, reached for her father’s hand and tugged at it a little. “I’m ready to go now,” she said eagerly, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

“Alright then, let’s go,” Arthur said when Emma gave his hand another tug. Before he let himself be pulled outside he added, “It was nice meeting you, Merlin,” with a smile that left Merlin completely and utterly charmed.

***

“We need to talk,” Elena said one afternoon about two weeks later as Merlin was cleaning up the mess that twenty four-year-olds and two grown-ups had made of the pre-school’s kitchen while baking cookies.  She was wiping the floor and Merlin was busy rinsing out the bowls that hadn’t fit into the dishwasher anymore. He turned around and saw that the mop was leaned against the wall. Elena was looking at him and she didn’t seem happy.

“Okay, what’s up?” Merlin asked, clueless as to what she’d gotten so upset about all of a sudden.

“You, my friend, need to stop being so disgustingly swooned by the way Emma’s father flirts with you. I was afraid you’d throw yourself at him when he picked that piece of dough from your hair today,” Elena said.

“Excuse me? I wasn’t swooned,” Merlin lied. He was convinced that it was damn near impossible not to be swooning when Arthur Pendragon did anything. He dropped his daughter off at Avalon every morning and always came by to pick her up in the afternoon, even though he was probably very important at the law firm for which he worked. He also always took the time to talk to Merlin, who’d voluntarily been taking care of sending the kids off for two weeks in a row. He was interesting, charming and funny, with the kind of subtle humor that Merlin shared, not to mention completely fucking gorgeous.

“You’re swooning right now,” Elena remarked, crossing her arms in front of her chest and Merlin cursed himself for always being so obvious about these type of things.

“So what if I am. I don’t see the problem, Ellie,” he said with a shrug and grabbed a towel to dry off everything he’d just rinsed.

Elena sighed. “I am pretty sure he has a girlfriend.” She held up her hand when she saw that Merlin, who definitely did not believe anything of the sort, was about to protest. “Look, I’m really sorry. I didn’t want to say anything before, but I think you’re really falling for this guy and what he’s doing isn’t exactly fair. He and Emma’s mother came in together to sign her up here, and I know that they’re not married, but they looked very affectionate.”

Merlin frowned at her and tried to piece this together with the way Arthur had been behaving since the moment they met. “Are you sure? I mean…maybe they’re one of those rare couples that had an amicable divorce?” Merlin knew that Elena wouldn’t make something like this up to hurt him.

“I also saw them last night. Gwaine took me out to this really nice restaurant and they were there, having what looked like a very romantic candlelight dinner. Maybe they just never got married. I know it seems unlikely since they have a kid, but some people just don’t get married, Merlin.”

“But then…why has he been flirting with me?” Merlin asked, but it wasn’t an attempt to challenge Elena’s claim. He just felt sad and a little angry, too.

“I don’t know. Maybe he thought you weren’t taking it seriously. It’s a shitty thing to do.” Elena looked at him with pity and concern.

“Fuck,” Merlin said, because the world really wasn’t fair.

***

Merlin usually popped into the coffee shop on his way to work every morning to indulge himself with a cup of warm and syrupy caffeine and he was standing in line waiting for his turn to order when Arthur came in through the door. “Shit,” Merlin mumbled when Arthur spotted him immediately and came up to him.

“Good morning,” Arthur said with his gorgeous smile at the ready and Merlin realised that he’d actually missed seeing him. For the past few days, he had very effectively avoided seeing Arthur by hiding inside the group room whenever he was in danger of running into him.

“Hi,” Merlin said. He shoved his hands further into the pockets of his jacket and wished the line to move along faster.

“So you’re not MIA, then. I haven’t seen you around at Avalon this week,” Arthur said. His smile was fading away slowly while Merlin’s treacherous heart beat a little faster because apparently, Arthur had missed him.

“Oh. Yeah, that – well, I was there, but sometimes it feels like you could use another set of hands with the kids, so I guess I was busy?” The words sounded lame even to his own ears and Arthur only nodded so that an awkward moment of silence stretched out between them.

“Look,” Arthur said suddenly, when it was almost Merlin’s turn to order. He seemed a little unsure of himself which was something Merlin never thought he’d see. “Do you have a minute before you have to get to work? I’d like to buy you a coffee.”

“Um – okay?” Merlin replied, because what else was he supposed to say to that? He was being completely ridiculous.

A couple of minutes later they were sitting down at one of the tables in the back of the shop, Arthur with a mug of pure, black coffee and Merlin with a White Chocolate Cranberry Latte in front of him because Arthur had made him order first.

“So, Merlin, I wanted to-“

“Are you divorced?” Merlin cut in, once again becoming a victim of his sometimes dysfunctional brain-to-mouth filter that had gotten him into much trouble over the years. He bit his lip to stop himself from apologising and taking the question back, though. Now that it was out he might as well wait for an answer.

Arthur looked at him, definitely taken by surprise, and shook his head.

“No. If I’m not entirely mistaken, only people who got married at some point in their lives can experience the joys of divorce,” Arthur said. For some reason, he seemed to be amused now and that irritated Merlin.

“Okay, so you never got married, whatever. It’s still a dick move to flirt with someone if you’re in a relationship and have a kid.”

“Agreed, but I’m not in a relationship,” Arthur said. He was grinning now.

“Yeah, but still – wait, what?” It clicked, then, and Merlin very much wanted to close his eyes and cover his ears and pretend that he wasn’t there anymore because he hadn’t made such an idiot of himself in a while and he’d forgotten all about how embarrassing it could be.

“I promise I’m perfectly single. I have been ever since Mithian and I split up, and that was before Emma was even born,” Arthur explained.

“Oh. But Elena said that you seemed like a couple and then I didn’t understand why you were flirting with me all the time. You were flirting with me, right?” Merlin wasn’t feeling so sure about anything anymore.

“God, yes. I’ve been trying to ask you out for weeks but I never found the right moment and then you started hiding from me and I thought that perhaps it’d been unwelcome. I guess that’s understandable if you thought that I was with Mithian, but she and I are just friends.”

Merlin took a sip from his cup then to buy a few more seconds to sort out the chaos in his head that was slowly disentangling itself at the same time as a warm feeling was spreading through his gut that had nothing to do with the coffee. He considered apologising for his stupidity but really, he didn’t feel the need to remind Arthur of that now. “You’ve been trying to ask me out?” He asked instead.

“Well, technically I just asked you out for coffee and I’d say it’s your turn, although I’m not so sure that whatever you ordered can actually be called coffee,” Arthur said with a smug grin on his face.

“Shut up, my taste in coffee is impeccable,” Merlin said with fake indignation before he laughed and shrugged. “Are you free tonight?”

***

When Merlin woke up the next day he needed a few seconds to gather his surroundings and remember to whom the arm that was wrapped around him belonged. When he looked up he was met by a pair of smiling eyes and Arthur, who pressed a kiss against his temple and said, “Good morning.” His voice was still a little sleep-rough.

“Morning,” Merlin mumbled and turned around to hide his face in the crook of Arthur’s neck where the sunlight streaming in through the window couldn’t blind him. He only realised belatedly that Arthur was bound to notice the morning hard-on now that it was pressed up against his side.

Arthur didn’t say anything. He buried his hand in Merlin’s hair and his thumb stroked a spot behind Merlin’s ear. Merlin was content to let him and maybe drift off to sleep again for a little while when Arthur began to move his hips ever so slightly, which caused a friction against Merlin’s cock that had him moaning against Arthur’s collarbone within minutes.

All thoughts of sleep gone, he pushed himself up on one elbow and wasn’t surprised to see a self-satisfied grin on Arthur’s lips.

“You think you’re very clever, don’t you?” Merlin asked.

“Maybe,” Arthur replied and with a sudden fluid movement, he flipped them around and straddled Merlin. When he leaned forward to kiss Merlin, open mouthed and filthy because apparently they were skipping right over the stage where one felt awkward about morning breath, their cocks brushed together. Merlin loved the way it felt and remembered how Arthur had jerked them both off last night after they’d cut their second date short in favour of going to Arthur’s fancy apartment.

“You never even gave me a tour,” Merlin said once Arthur had broken the kiss to move on along Merlin’s jawline and down the side of his neck, lingering to worry at Merlin’s nipple with tongue and careful teeth.

Arthur paused and propped his chin up on Merlin’s stomach so he could meet his eyes. “I can stop and give you a tour right now if that’s what you want,” he said and raised an eyebrow as if he dared Merlin to keep complaining.

“On second thought, I know my way to the bedroom, that’s good enough for now.”

Arthur grinned and continued kissing his way down until he reached the spot where pre-cum was already smeared against Merlin’s skin. Merlin watched him as he licked it up and the sight made his cock ache with anticipation. He dug his fingernails into the blanket to keep himself from begging Arthur to move the fuck on and thankfully it didn’t take long before Arthur had his lips wrapped around Merlin, tongue teasing the tip before he opened his mouth further and began to move his head up and down.

Merlin closed his eyes and rested his head against the headboard and let the glorious feeling of his spit-slicked cock sliding in and out of Arthur’s mouth take over. Soon, he was writhing against the sheets and moaning Arthur’s name, so close to his release that he wished Arthur would go just a little faster. Before he could stop himself, his hips bucked up and his cock hit the back of Arthur’s throat.

“Fuck,” Merlin said, staring at Arthur with wide eyes, “I’m sorry.” Arthur met his gaze in a heartbeat and pulled his head back.

“Don’t be,” Arthur said. His lips were deliciously red and glistening. Then, he licked up the length of Merlin’s cock before easing it back inside his mouth, but he wasn’t moving anymore. He looked at Merlin expectantly as if he was waiting for something.

“Oh,” Merlin said when he understood what Arthur wanted him to do. He could feel his cheeks turning hot at the thought.

He started fucking up into Arthur’s mouth slowly, careful not to hurt him but picked up his pace when Arthur put his hands on Merlin’s hips, which gave him the option to slow things down if he needed them to. Merlin couldn’t take his eyes off Arthur now, overwhelmed by the sheer sight and the amount of trust he’d been met with, and it sent him over the edge more quickly than he anticipated. He could feel Arthur humming around his cock when he came.

Merlin collapsed back, breathing heavily. “Fuck, Arthur. Your mouth,” he said and took Arthur’s hand that was still resting on his hipbone and pulled him up towards him until he could wrap his arm around Arthur’s neck to guide his head down for a kiss. He could still trace the taste of his own come on Arthur’s lips.

“How do you feel about sex in the shower?” Arthur asked, grinning against Merlin’s lips. He drew random patterns across Merlin’s arm until he reached his hand and entwined their fingers.

Merlin laughed. “Oh, does that mean I’ll get to see the bathroom next?”

***

Later, after they’d had breakfast and Arthur had given Merlin a tour of the rest of his apartment, they ended up on the couch, watching nothing in particular until they stumbled across a three part documentary about Scandinavia and Merlin learned that Arthur spoke Swedish as well as French and Portuguese. They also shared a passion for documentaries of most kinds.

Merlin had been a little worried about Arthur’s affinity for cuddling, but that sorted itself out when he came back from the kitchen with two cups of tea and sat down close to Merlin, leaning into him slightly until he changed the angle of his body so that they fit together just right. It was a lovely feeling and Merlin actually thought that he wouldn’t mind simply staying like this forever.

He allowed himself to dose off to the soothing voiceover coming from the TV and was only woken up when Arthur’s mobile vibrated on the coffee table with an incoming call. Arthur took  it without moving even an inch away from where he was draped over Merlin’s side. The conversation didn’t last long; Arthur only said hello to whoever was on the line and listened for a couple of seconds before he said, “No problem, I’m at home. I’ll see you in a bit!” He hung up and looked at Merlin as if he was considering something.

“Is everything okay?” Merlin asked.

“Yes. That was Mithian on the phone. She’s been called into work and needs to drop Emma off here a little earlier than planned.” There was anticipation in his eyes now and Merlin wished he knew what Arthur expected him to say to that.

“Do you want me to leave?”

“No,” Arthur said, shaking his head. “That is, not unless you don’t want to stay, but to be honest, Emma has already picked up on the fact that I like you a lot. Apparently I look at you the way Flynn looks at Rapunzel, who knew? So I think as long as we don’t mention that you slept over, we won’t have much explaining to do. Also, you should know that my daughter is brilliant and-“

Merlin shut him up then by taking Arthur’s head between his hands and kissing him thoroughly. He didn’t care that maybe, they were moving a little too fast and he didn’t care that he was going to meet Emma’s mother, either. Maybe this was exactly the right pace for them.

So he said, “I’d love to stay,” and kissed the corner of Arthur’s eye where his skin wrinkled as he smiled. 


End file.
